Climate justice

A multi-dimensional approach

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.35295/sz.iisl.2714

Keywords:

Climate Justice, Climate Change, Global South, Environmental Policy, Environmental Law

Abstract

The objective of this work is to characterize the conceptual foundations, regional variations, and policy implications of climate justice, and to identify gaps in the current literature. To this end, a systematic review was conducted in accordance with the PRISMA protocol, analyzing 27 studies selected from eight academic databases after screening 1,057 initial records. The results indicate an increase in scientific production after 2020, with a predominant focus on political and social dimensions. Furthermore, regional analyses reveal that the Global South prioritizes reparations and sovereignty, whereas the Global North prioritizes intergenerational equity. In conclusion, there is a persistent disconnect between theoretical frameworks and the actual implementation of policies and educational programs, making it necessary to integrate justice effectively and in practice into global climate governance.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Global Statistics ℹ️

Cumulative totals since publication
14
Views
4
Downloads
18
Total

Author Biographies

Iván Vargas-Chaves, Universidad Militar Nueva Granada

Doctor en Derecho Supranacional e Interno por la Università di Palermo, Italia. Doctor en Derecho – Derecho Internacional Privado por la Universidad de Barcelona, España. Profesor Asociado de la Facultad de Derecho de la Universidad Militar Nueva Granada, Bogotá, Colombia. Correo electrónico: ivan.vargas@unimilitar.edu.co

Diego Hernández-Guzmán, Universidad Militar Nueva Granada

Doctor en Filosofía de la Universitè Catholique de Louvain, Bélgica. Profesor Asistente de la Facultad de Derecho de la Universidad Militar Nueva Granada, Bogotá, Colombia. Correo electrónico: diego.hernandez@unimilitar.edu.co

References

Ashrafuzzaman, M., Gomes, C., y Guerra, J., 2022. Climate justice for the southwestern coastal region of Bangladesh. Frontiers in Climate [en línea], 4, 881709. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.3389/fclim.2022.881709 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fclim.2022.881709

Baptiste, A. K., y Rhiney, K., 2016. Climate justice and the Caribbean: An introduction. Geoforum [en línea], 73, 17-21. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2016.04.008 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2016.04.008

Bond, P., y Dorsey, M. K., 2010. Anatomies of environmental knowledge and resistance: diverse climate justice movements and waning eco-neoliberalism. Journal of Australian Political Economy, (66), 286-316.

Bourban, M., 2026. Rethinking climate justice: Toward ecological limitarianism. Ethics, Policy & Environment [en línea], 29(2), 179-196. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1080/21550085.2025.2574219 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/21550085.2025.2574219

Brandstedt, E., y Brülde, B., 2019. Towards a theory of pure procedural climate justice. Journal of Applied Philosophy [en línea], 36(5), 785-799. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1111/japp.12357 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/japp.12357

Cairney, P., Timonina, I., y Stephan, H., 2023. How can policy and policymaking foster climate justice? A qualitative systematic review. Open Research Europe [en línea], 3, 51. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.12688/openreseurope.15719.2 DOI: https://doi.org/10.12688/openreseurope.15719.2

Chapman, A.R., y Ahmed, A.K., 2021. Climate justice, humans rights, and the case for reparations. Health and Human Rights [en línea], 23(2), 81. Disponible en: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34966227/

Chu, E., y Michael, K., 2019. Recognition in urban climate justice: Marginality and exclusion of migrants in Indian cities. Environment and Urbanization [en línea], 31(1), 139-156. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1177/0956247818814449 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0956247818814449

Damico, J. S., Baildon, M., y Panos, A., 2020. Climate justice literacy: Stories-we-live-by, ecolinguistics, and classroom practice. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy [en línea], 63(6), 683-691. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1002/jaal.1051 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/jaal.1051

Diezmartínez, C. V., y Short Gianotti, A. G., 2022. US cities increasingly integrate justice into climate planning and create policy tools for climate justice. Nature Communications [en línea], 13(1), 5763. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-33392-9 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-33392-9

Dolšak, N., y Prakash, A., 2022. Three faces of climate justice. Annual Review of Political Science [en línea], 25, 283-301. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-polisci-051120-125514 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-polisci-051120-125514

Enari, D., y Viliamu Jameson, L., 2021. Climate justice: a Pacific Island perspective. Australian Journal of Human Rights [en línea], 27(1), 149-160. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1080/1323238X.2021.1950905 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/1323238X.2021.1950905

González, C. G., 2018. Climate justice and climate displacement: evaluating the emerging legal and policy responses. Wisconsin International Law Journal [en línea], 36, 366. Disponible en: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3398442

González, C. G., 2021. Racial capitalism, climate justice, and climate displacement. Oñati Socio-Legal Series [en línea], 11(1), 108-147. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.35295/osls.iisl/0000-0000-0000-1137 DOI: https://doi.org/10.35295/osls.iisl/0000-0000-0000-1137

Jones, R., Reid, P., y Macmillan, A., 2024. An Indigenous climate justice policy analysis tool. Climate Policy [en línea], 24(8), 1080-1095. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1080/14693062.2024.2362845 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14693062.2024.2362845

Kashwan, P., 2021. Climate justice in the Global North: an introduction. Case Studies in the Environment [en línea], 5(1), 1125003. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1525/cse.2021.1125003 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1525/cse.2021.1125003

Khan, M., et al., 2020. Twenty-five years of adaptation finance through a climate justice lens. Climatic Change [en línea], 161(2), 251-269. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-019-02563-x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-019-02563-x

Kortetmäki, T., 2016. Reframing climate justice: A three-dimensional view on just climate negotiations. Ethics, Policy & Environment [en línea], 19(3), 320-334. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.34395.05926 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/21550085.2016.1226238

Lefstad, L., y Paavola, J., 2024. The evolution of climate justice claims in global climate change negotiations under the UNFCCC. Critical Policy Studies [en línea], 18(3), 363-388. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1080/19460171.2023.2235405 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/19460171.2023.2235405

Mayes, E., y Center, E., 2023. Learning with student climate strikers’ humour: Towards critical affective climate justice literacies. Environmental Education Research [en línea], 29(4), 520-538. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2022.2067322 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2022.2067322

McGurty, E. M., 1997. From NIMBY to civil rights: The origins of the environmental justice movement. Environmental History [en línea], 2(3), 301-323. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.2307/3985352 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/3985352

Mikulewicz, M., et al., 2023. Intersectionality & climate justice: A call for synergy in climate change scholarship. Environmental Politics [en línea], 32(7), 1275-1286. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1080/09644016.2023.2172869 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09644016.2023.2172869

Muttitt, G., y Kartha, S., 2020. Equity, climate justice and fossil fuel extraction: principles for a managed phase out. Climate Policy [en línea], 20(8), 1024-1042. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1080/14693062.2020.1763900 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14693062.2020.1763900

Ogunbode, C. A., 2022. Climate justice is social justice in the Global South. Nature Human Behaviour [en línea], 6(11), 1443-1450. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-022-01456-x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-022-01456-x

Okedele, O., et al., 2024. Human rights, climate justice, and environmental law: Bridging international legal standards for social equity. Human Rights, 20(12), 232-241.

Parsons, E. S., et al., 2025. Climate change and inequality. Pediatric Research [en línea], 98(4), 1238-1245. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-024-03153-z DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-024-03153-z

Pollex, J., 2024. Climate justice and policy analysis: still a reserved relationship. NPJ Climate Action [en línea], 3(1), 65. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1038/s44168-024-00146-w DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s44168-024-00146-w

Schapper, A., 2018. Climate justice and human rights. International Relations [en línea], 32(3), 275-295. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1177/0047117818782595 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0047117818782595

Schlosberg, D., 1999. Environmental justice and the new pluralism: The challenge of difference for environmentalism. Oxford University Press.

Sokol, K. C., 2020. Seeking (some) climate justice in state tort law. Washington Law Review [en línea], 95(3), 1383. Disponible en: https://digitalcommons.law.uw.edu/wlr/vol95/iss3/7/

Stapleton, S. R., 2019. A case for climate justice education: American youth connecting to intragenerational climate injustice in Bangladesh. Environmental Education Research [en línea], 25(5), 732-750. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2018.1472220 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2018.1472220

Sultana, F., 2022. Critical climate justice. The Geographical Journal [en línea], 188(1), 118-124. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1111/geoj.12417 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/geoj.12417

Svarstad, H., 2021. Critical climate education: Studying climate justice in time and space. International Studies in Sociology of Education [en línea], 30(1-2), 214-232. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1080/09620214.2020.1855463 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09620214.2020.1855463

Swartz, M. K., 2021. PRISMA 2020: an update. Journal of Pediatric Health Care [en línea], 35(4), 351. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedhc.2021.04.011 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedhc.2021.04.011

Trott, C. D., 2024. Activism as education in and through the youth climate justice movement. British Educational Research Journal [en línea], 1-21. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1002/berj.4082 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/berj.4082

Whyte, K., 2020. Too late for indigenous climate justice: Ecological and relational tipping points. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change [en línea], 11(1), e603. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1002/wcc.603 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/wcc.603

Wilkens, J., y Datchoua-Tirvaudey, A. R., 2022. Researching climate justice: a decolonial approach to global climate governance. International Affairs [en línea], 98(1), 125-143. Disponible en: https://doi.org/10.1093/ia/iiab209 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/ia/iiab209

Published

10/29/2026

How to Cite

Vargas-Chaves, I. and Hernández-Guzmán, D. (2026) “Climate justice: A multi-dimensional approach”, Sortuz: Oñati Journal of Emergent Socio-Legal Studies, 16(2), pp. 603–624. doi: 10.35295/sz.iisl.2714.

Issue

Section

Individual articles